Favorite Photos from April 2023

Below are some of my favorite photos from April...or at least ones that I want to remember what happened in April. 

On April 1st, there was a major snowfall. The snow, by this point, covered half of the doors and windows on the barn. This has been a nightmarish winter, to say the least. 

One of the things I like about the winter, though, is that I can see tracks in the snow. It amazes me how much "traffic" there is around the yard by different mammals and birds in the winter and early-spring.

Once the snow melted a bit, I took the dogs out for a walk. I need to get into the routine of walking again.

The dogs love to walk along this road. There isn't a lot of traffic or walker/bikers, which is nice.

These photos are of Easter Cactuses that I got this year. In April, there was continued snow and it was becoming more challenging to deal with the never-ending winter and dreariness of the snow and ice. Bright, cheerful flowers were what I needed.

  

As the month progressed, the ice and snow melted. The seasonal pond was getting larger each day. The ducks and geese were returning which was uplighting. Spring was finally getting here!

Paige and I visited Olivia at college one day. We all enjoyed dinner together.

Afterward, she showed us the drawing studio. This is one of her pieces she did with charcoal.

The red-winged blackbirds were returning to Minnesota in earnest. The tough thing for the birds is that there's not a lot of food for them since the weather has been so cold. Only a few trees have buds on them. I love to hear the birds sing and call to one another in the trees.

Ashley (one of Sophia's roommates) had her final concert. There was a wide variety of music and everyone played beautifully. Sophia played the harp and Olivia played the flute. 

Sophia and Olivia along with Nessa (Sophia's roommate) came home for Easter break. I asked the girls if they wanted to dye Easter eggs and they did. 

They used crayons to create designs before soaking the eggs in dye which they enjoyed.

I had fun shopping for Easter baskets this year. This is Olivia with her Easter basket. She had more nature- and dog-themed items in her basket.

That sunlight was bright on Easter. We enjoyed having breakfast together. Paige requested pancakes and Sophia wanted blueberries in them. It has been a while since we had fresh blueberries in pancakes.  

This is Sophia's Easter basket. She was excited about the different items - some practical and others not so practical. 

We went to my brother's home for Easter. The girls were eating with two of their cousins at this table (one is pictured and the other joined later). 

The rest of us ate Easter dinner at this table. We had an untraditional taco dinner for Easter which we all liked.

For dessert, my brother got big decorated cupcakes. Here's Olivia and Sophia with their cupcakes. 

 

Sophia made a cheesecake since Paige had to work on Easter. He loves cheesecake.

On April 15th, I coordinated and held a Service Project Sampler Day. The event took about four months to create and relied on many volunteers from the Lions and community to make it happen. We had 199 people attend the event - up from 137 last year and about 60 the year before. We had 15 hands-on projects and 21 collection drives. It was the largest one to date.

My sister is working on the Sole Hope project - creating shoe kits from blue jeans for children in Uganda who had and were treated for jiggers. 

Another project we did at the Service Project Sampler Day was knit and crochet hats for newborns in third-world countries. The hats are one of many things we made and donated, and are used as incentives for women to get pre-natal care and to deliver their babies in clinics/hospitals. 

These were pillowcases that some of the volunteers made for children living on a reservation in California. The sewers made 55 pillowcases! 

At the museum where I'm doing marketing/PR and now have become the Associate Director, we have a new exhibit called Swedish Folk Painting: Tradition and Innovation. This is one of 37 pieces that are being shown. The cupboard/case opens and has two shelves that hold tiny glasses.

This is another painting. I like it because it has two animals in it. 

There are five historic buildings at the museum, and this is one of them. Originally, it was the pastor's house and then it was sold to a family back in the 1800s. One of the children who was born in the home lived there until the 1970s. There was never central heat, air conditioning, or a bathroom in the home. It was heated by a wood stove in the living room. It just amazes me that a woman in her 80s was hauling wood in the late-fall, winter, and early-spring to keep her home warm.

The last week in April, I attended the Minnesota Association of Local History Museums in Austin, Minnesota. I went on the Tree Trek that featured over 75 trees and shrubs that can grow in Minnesota.

Here's another sign of spring.

At the Hormel Historic Home in Austin, there was an old treadle sewing machine that was set up.

This was another display at the Hormel Home that I thought was clever. I liked how the trunk is on one end and displays various linens. 

One of the activities at the MALHM conference was to find rubber ducks that had been hidden around the conference area. On the underside of each duck were raffle tickets. I found four ducks - each with a different appearance. It was a great way to add more fun to the conference.

This was a small lake with a dam in Austin. 

My sister and I went to the Como Conservatory to see their Spring Show. It was beautiful with its purple, white, and yellow flowers. 

I love the colors on these flowers.

There were brightly-colored flowers tucked in little spaces throughout the display.

The smell of the conservatory was amazing! It was just what I needed in April when things still were not in bloom yet outdoors.

This flower had tons of little tiny flowers on it. I've always wanted to grow them, but the cost per bulb is so expensive. 

There was an orchid section in another part of the conservatory. 

This was one of the flowers in the bromeliad section. These flowers collect water in their centers.

My sister stood next to one of the bonsai in the bonsai room. This one was the most impressive one because it was covered in flowers. It's an azalea. 

This was one of the little waterfalls in the Como Conservatory. 

After going to the Como Conservatory, my sister and I went to Hmong Village to look around and then have some lunch. I got three spring rolls at Hmong Village. Before I realized that I didn't take a photo, I ate one of the spring rolls. It was delicious!

At Hmong Village, Mary ordered a sesame ball with her chicken pad thai. It was huge!

There was a long aisle of Asian restaurants - each with a slightly different focus. We ordered at one all the way at the end of the aisle. This was the first available table...that's how popular this place is!

Afterward, we had some bubble tea. 

That wraps up April. 

My Favorite Photos - April 2022

My photos for this month aren't in chronological order like they normally are. I'm not sure what happened when uploading them to Blogger. At any rate, some highlights from the month are below. 

The month started out with a major service event I coordinated for the Lions Club. We did 12 hands-on service projects and 12 collections. There were 137 people there - Lions and community members. One of the projects we did was create shoe kits for Sole Hope. These pieces, cut from donated blue jeans, will be made into shoes in Uganda that will be given to children who suffered from jiggers. The shoes literally can save the lives of children who receive them.

We collected close to 700 toiletries for youth and their families who don't have running water at their homes on a reservation in Arizona. There are showers at the school that the youth and parents can use, and these toiletries will be given to them.

Some of our Lions Club members sewed these cute kimonos for children in third-world countries. They use the tops as incentives for mothers to come into a health clinic to get medical care. 

We made five blankets for teens with pediatric cancer.

We made 32 hats for newborns in third-world countries.

We collected over 87 pounds of plastic bags. These will be donated, reused, and made into a bench. When we reach 500 pounds within six months, we will receive a bench for our community.

We made 306 sandwiches for people who are experiencing homelessness.

One of my favorite photos is seeing my oldest daughter, Sophia, enjoying her study abroad experience in Thailand.

She and a group of students went to the southern part of Thailand over Easter weekend. 

The landscape looked amazingly beautiful - like nothing I have ever seen.

Meanwhile, back at home, I was finishing up backings for quilts that I made this year. The front of this wildlife-theme quilt is on top of the backing. For the backing, I did three narrow strips of fabric I sewed together. It adds a bit of variety to the backing. The next step is to get it quilted together so Danny (the dog) has a more comfortable quilt to sit on.

Olivia had her final graduation meeting at the homeschool co-op. She got her graduation ceremony announcements as well as her cap and gown. She thought it was a little bit short, but the director said it was the right length. 

Danny celebrated his birthday in April! 

Olivia and I went to a town celebration of a sister-city partnership with a Swedish city. We didn't know if there would be many people there. I think everyone who wasn't working came out for the event. There had to be over 100 people there - plus the sixth-grade class and a choir. 

After the ceremony, there was a "Fika" - basically a Swedish snack. There were a lot of Lions there, so we ate with the President and Vice President. One of our oldest members - who is 92 years old - came to the event with his daughter who just retired at 65 years old. 

There was a special cake at the event with the Swedish and U.S. flags, and blue and yellow flowers. It was a delicious cake!

Olivia got her prom dress back from the tailor. She's ready to go to prom now on May 13th.

We went to a concert at Bethel during April. One of Sophia's roommates, Ashley, had her junior recital along with another student, Micah. We got there about 20 minutes before it started. We could pick wherever we wanted to sit. We took a photo in the front row and then moved back quite a few rows to get a better view of the stage. 

Two of Sophia's friends/roommates sat with us - Krista and Lexi.

Ashley had no idea that we were going to be there. We were right up front so she could see us. She was very happy - and surprised! - to see us.

What I loved seeing was that there was a line-up of friends and family in the hallway waiting for Ashley and Micah to come out. When they did, there were cheers and clapping...just so supportive and encouraging. 

I took some photos for Ashley so she could email them to her parents who live in California. This is Ashley with Krista. 

This is Lexi goofing around. 

And then a more subdued one with Lexi, Ashley, and Micah. All three are going into some aspect of music.

I tried my hand at a new quilt block using fabric from a Quilt Shop Hop that Sophia and I went on together in 2018. 

This year, I went on a Quilt Shop Hop with my friend, Karen. She, like me, loves dogs. We saw this cute puppy at the second quilt shop we visited.  

We went to six quilt shops plus had lunch together. It was a full - and fun - day! 

These were some signs at the restaurant that Karen treated me to. 

The cat image also was at the restaurant. 

At one of the quilt shops, there was a line of fabric with Charley Harper's artwork - all bird-themed. 

Also saw this fun fabric at Twin Cities Quilting. I thought it would be the perfect backing to a quilt I'll be starting soon that has many of these colors in it. 

The shop also had a quilt that had pandas wearing sweaters. Someone said that all they needed was to be holding bubble tea.

Olivia started on her quilt which will be navy blue, gray, white, and blue. She will be making nine of this quilt block. She was happy with how it turned out.

Olivia wrapped up doing videotaping and creating short videos for Gammelgarden Museum during April. This is one of the Dala horses at the museum. Because there was no one there except the director and us, we could pick up this Dala horse. It's made from wood, so it is kind of heavy...though more awkward than heavy.

Olivia entered three of her photos in a juried teen art show at White Bear Center for the Arts and all three were chosen! Needless to say, she was very happy. This is one of her photos.

This is another one of the Stillwater Lift Bridge.

The third one is a leaf half-buried in snow.

For the Lions' Breakfast with the Easter Bunny, there was a bake sale. I made lemon scones, dipped Oreo cookies, and cake pops. These are just some of the plates of items I brought. All of the items I brought were purchased which helped raised money for the Lions.

We started the Breakfast with the Easter Bunny in 2021 during the pandemic. It was so well-received that we continued it in 2022. The difference was that in 2021 we did a drive-through model and in 2022 we had the breakfast inside. The picture shows the majority of the volunteers for the event. The sheriff is one of our Lions Club members.

For Easter, we went to my brother's home. Jim made a standing rib roast (or sirloin roast...I'm not sure). He had a whole counter full of items he made. It was all delicious!

I enjoyed seeing his dogs - his new one, Scout...

and his first one, Bear.

We had a table full of people. This Paige, Jim, Mary, her two sons, and their girlfriends.

This table had Jim's children, Olivia, and the grandparents of Jim's children (the mother's parents). 

Paige got some currency to use in London when we go there for Olivia's graduation trip. We'll be spending a few days in London, then going north to Edinburgh, Scotland, for a few days, and then back to London to finish the trip.

I finished another quilt in April. The center part is a panel, so I didn't do anything with that. The part I did was the colorful border. It's called a "piano keys" border and it is very easy to sew. It didn't take that long to make.

The red-winged blackbirds have been enjoying the pond along with the mallards and frogs. This one was singing quite a bit one day when Olivia and I went out in the pasture and pond area.

There were lots of signs of spring around the farm.

The white-throated sparrows have returned. This one has so many different shades of brown and tan.

The sandhill cranes are back too. This one was hanging around the pond one evening. Their sounds are so unusual. 

The mallards are spending lots of time here - more so than in past years.

  

 I'm hoping we see ducklings later this spring or summer. 

On the 28th, Olivia was one of the speakers at the Ann Bancroft Foundation's 25th anniversary. This is her first slide of her PowerPoint presentation. We were at the soundcheck prior to the event. 

She spoke in front of over 500 people...

 

and shared the impact that the grant had on her life.

The audience clapped A LOT throughout her speech and then gave Olivia a standing ovation! 

 

I think it was a lot to take in for her...and it will be one of the things she remembers for the rest of her life.